chapter 9: Restaurant

"Look at that lady beside the handsome young man," a man whispered as Mina and Kai entered the clothing shop.

"She's so pretty!" Another added.

"Wow, despite her wearing a veil to cover half of her face, her eyes are so pretty." Another woman gasped in awe.

Mina looked around the shop, ignoring other people's words and scanned the clothes around.

"Kai, are you sure I can get what clothes I want?" Mina asked sheepishly, and Kai nodded with a smile.

Mina explored and picked several clothes and whenever she tried them on in the dressing room she would show them to Kai and others too gathered around to admire her. However, they were all scared off by Kai's menacing glare. Seeing this, Mina laughed.

After hours of choosing clothes, Mina came out with eight bags of clothes with a happy smile.

"Finally I don't have to wear male robes!" Mina beamed as she admired the new dress she was wearing. She wore a pink robe up to her knee, and a pair of long black leggings up to her thigh. Her arms were covered with long baggy sleeves and a bit of her cleavage was revealed.

"I wonder why I'll put this, they won't fit in my bag

There are so many people around here," Mina pondered out loud and Kai tapped her.

"I can place them in my space ring," Kai suggested.

"I forgot you have that, okay then," Mina nodded and her bag of clothes immediately disappeared and entered Kai's ring.

Mina looked around to see many eyes were on her, and she frowned a bit, "Their stares are making me dizzy." Mina hugged Kai tightly, and Kai watched her hands tremble a bit. Kai wrapped his arms around her and patted her head, hoping to comfort her.

"If you're insecure about your clothing, we can change it," Kai recommended nervously.

Mina shook her head, "I'm not insecure about that. The trials are coming, and we may fight some beast wearing a long thick dress would just be a hindrance."

'What's more, it can't compare to the more lewd clothing I've worn before.' Mina thought. 'This somehow reminds me of when I was a child in the red-like district.' Mina closed her eyes as she remembered a memory from her past again.

Inside a room, children sat there all shaking, but Mina's eyes seemed dead with barely any emotions. She watched as people would pass by with creepy faces and pick a young girl or boy, and they would be dragged out a later brought back.

A woman stood before the showroom with bars before it and yelled with enthusiasm, "Come pick the little girls and boys of the red-light district! They're 15 years of age, ripe, and well! Wouldn't you want to try them?"

Mina watched as a beautiful woman with long red robes walked before the seller and slapped her hard causing her nose to bleed, "Stop this at once how can do this to such young girls and boys they barely look 15!" The woman in red robes yelled.

"Young lady, it's just business!" The seller on the floor barked as she rubbed her aching cheek.

The woman in red robes gritted her teeth and yelled, "I won't stand for it, whether it's business or not. Stop this now or else I'll let my family shut down this fiasco." She raised a golden insignia and the seller trembled with fear.

After that day, the children weren't forced into sexual activities, but they were still made to learn for their future jobs, however, all their skills were deemed useless after the day Mina's mother and sister and everyone else were killed by cultivators.

Mina trembled once more as she remembered that day.

'I feel so weak and pathetic when I think about it!'

"Mina, are you okay?" Kai asked with a worried tone.

"I'm not, I just don't feel well," Mina said dryly and Kai looked shocked.

Kai bent down and whispered into her ear, "Don't tell me you're pregnant?"

"I'm not!" Mina yelled with a flushed face, and Kai laughed.

"Mina then are you hungry?" Kai asked and Mina nodded.

"Lemme check my bag first," Mina said as she removed her backpack and opened inside.

'Well, seems like that girl had money,' she thought as she saw several silver coins inside.

"Okay, I have money, let's buy food!" Mina declared with a determined look.

"You don't have to, I'll buy the food," Kai waved his hands frantically.

"As much as I want to leech from you, I must not do stuff like that all the time. Or else I would be considered a gold digger," Mina clasped Kai's palms and looked at him with a serious look.

"I don't mind," Kai said shyly.

"It's not about you minding, this is about my pride as a woman! Not that I got any pride though," Mina sulked.

"Okay then," Kai conceded to Mina's pleading face, and she jumped cheerfully.

"So now let's go to the restaurant!" Mina declared.

"I have no idea where the restaurant is," Kai scratched his head and Mina cried.

She then saw a young woman pass by with a pack that smelled like good food, and it immediately enticed Mina.

Mina walked up to the lady and asked politely, "Umm, please miss, do you know any good restaurants around here?"

The lady's fair face flushed red as she didn't expect this beautiful woman with a girl to ask her such a question, "Ah yes, if you go straight and take two lefts and a right you'll see a restaurant."

"Thank you so much, dear," Mina smiled.

"No worries and you're welcome miss," the lady scurried away.

"How cute," Mina giggled as she watched the flushed lady run away, but Kai pouted.

Mina and Kai walked hand in hand through the large city with several roads leading into it. An aqueduct runs along its eastern edge, connecting to a stream that flows through the city. Many large hotels can be seen near the center of the square. A well-tended garden lies north of the main road, and Mina sniffed some flowers. Fountains dot the streets, each depicting a different scene: one depicts a group of women and men fighting a beast, another shows a lady before a pill furnace, and so forth.

After a while, Mina finally reached a large restaurant and watched many people go in and come out. Mina urged Kai to quicken his pace as they entered. Before them was an ornate golden statue on each side of the entrance. Kai noticed that the walls are made from marble and adorned with relief carvings depicting scenes of cultivators. They look around with interest, taking in the elegant decor and tasteful furnishing. The large dining room is filled with well-dressed people enjoying their meals. A waiter approaches them; he bows respectfully to them as they approach him. He has short black hair and lovely brown skin. "Good evening," he says politely. "I am Antonio. How may I serve you?"

"A table for two, please," Kai stated politely.

Antonio nods. "Of course, sir." He turns around and says, "Follow me."

Mina and Kai followed him to the glass table and around it were four fluffy chairs. Mina sat down and continued to look around, enchanted by this new environment.

"So what would you like to order?" Antonio asked and handed both of them a menu.

Mina opened the menu and gasped in shock at the high prices.

"I don't know ….what I want to …eat, Kai," Mina said nervously.

"Then let me select," Kai smiled at her, "Could you please give us the flare fish rice, Bruce beef goiness, fiery grilled bird, and some wine?"

"Sure young master, I'll get it right away," Antonio nodded and immediately left.

Mina's hands trembled at the prices of the food Kai ordered. "So much for me paying for food. Why are they so fucking expensive?! This amount can last a common family a year." Mina cried in a low voice, and Kai couldn't help but giggle at her funny expressions.

Mina picked up her back and counted the silver coins she had. "Well I guess I have enough to pay for all the food," Mina mumbled and looked up at Kai whose face was suddenly close to hers.

"Hey what are you doing?!" Mina exclaimed with a flushed face.

"There was a leaf in your hair, see," Kai said and showed Mina the leaf on his fingers.

"Thank you," Mina said bashfully and brushed her back, causing Kai to blush again.